PUTRAJAYA: The explosive growth in the use of drones, a type of unmanned aerial system (UAS), over the past few years has led various regulators over the world to introduce measures to control their use in the interest of national security and public safety.
In view of this trend, the Civil Aviation Authority Malaysia (CAAM) – the lead agency to regulate the use of drones, has been refining the rules governing its now-ubiquitous use in filming, photography, surveillance, mapping as well as agriculture, just to name some.
"Drones started off as toys, but this is no longer the case," said Transport Minister Datuk Seri Dr Wee Ka Siong in his speech as he opened a CAAM workshop on drone handling for the Malaysian media, one of the groups that are increasingly reliant on drones to capture footage.
"While we support excellence in photography and video, we want this activity to be controlled as flying a drone comes with factors that affect privacy, safety, and security," he said at the workshop attended by nearly 100 media practitioners here on Wednesday (Aug 24).
CAAM CEO Datuk Capt Chester Voo, in his speech, said the sophistication of drones may make them seem to be easy to handle.
"However, when things go wrong, drones can also cause injuries, other than giving rise to issues such as safety and invasion of privacy.
"This is why we constantly emphasise the importance of risk assessment in relation to drones, even as we play our role to facilitate the growth of the industry," said Capt Voo, who added that CAAM would continue to keep a tight watch on the industry in order to keep up with the rapidly evolving field.
"That said, I want to thank the media for being supportive of the endeavours of CAAM as it plays its role as aviation services regulator while providing guidance on the development of the growth industry."
The special CAAM workshop at its office here explained current regulations, latest updates on the ecosystem in Malaysia, and a step-by-step guide on how the media can apply for special approval to fly drones under certain circumstances.
